Planning to ride out Hurricane Irene this weekend? At the very least you should prepare to be inconvenienced, but you don’t have to go back to the Stone Age.
Technology is here to help — charging your batteries, illuminating the darkness and keeping you abreast of the latest weather reports.
Even though we’re hearing East Coast stores are swamped with people buying batteries and emergency gear, you might get lucky and find one of these handy items to make your life easier as you wait out the storm, stay informed during its onslaught, and deal with its aftermath. Stay safe, and good luck!
Eton NSP500B Soulra XL Sound System for iPod and iPhone
This great-sounding solar boombox (we have one here for testing) charges with a large solar panel, and can juice up your iPhone or iPod Touch at the same time. It's $250.
RCA 7" Portable TV
Find this tiny 7-inch TV from RCA ($60) at Wal-Mart. It'll help you keep tabs on the approaching storm, letting you see the local TV station's weather maps and updates. Just be sure you have good DTV reception in your area -- you can check that at AntennaWeb.
Duracell Powerpack 600
This $150 Duracell Powerpack 600 battery pack might have just enough power to keep your refrigerator running, and at the same time it has an AM/FM radio with weather bands to keep you entertained and informed. After all the drama of the storm has passed, it'll be great to have around if you want to jumpstart your car.
Icon Rogue 1 Flashlight
Don't be fooled by this tiny flashlight's diminutive size -- the $38 Icon Rogue 1 flashlight's powerful LED cranks out 50 Lumens for three hours, or 6 Lumens for 70 hours on a single AA battery. Just 4.5 inches long, its tailcap switch lets you quickly turn it on and choose its brightness level. We have one of these, and can vouch for its sturdy construction and futuristic good looks.
Eton Axis Hand-Powered Home Safety Device with USB Cell Phone Charger
When the batteries run out, you'll be glad you have this $70 Eton Axis home safety device with USB cellphone charger. Turn its crank for one minute, and it generates enough power for a 30-second phone call. It'll charge up most smartphones and USB devices, and even has a flashlight and a multiband radio that brings you AM, FM and weather bands.
All Power America APG3014 Generator
Generators are going to be extremely hard to find, but they're worth looking for: This $200 All Power America APG3014 portable generator is a favorite of the users at Consumer Search. It cranks out 1400 Watts, and can surge to 2000 Watts -- enough to keep that refrigerator (a typical refrigerator-freezer requires around 540 Watts) running until power is restored. It runs for 9.5 hours on a tank of gas.
Coleman CPX High-Powered LED Mini Lantern
Let there be light with this mini lantern, giving you plenty of illumination as you sit in a circle and tell each other ghost stories as the hurricane passes through. This $30 LED mini lantern uses Coleman's CPX battery system, running on rechargeable power cartridges as well as AAA batteries.
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